The minuscule territory of Grand Fenwick, having had its one export of wine undercut by an American competitor, declares war on the US. It hopes that once having lost, the Americans will send aid and money. However, when their twenty-man army accidentally manages to capture and bring home both a prototype nuclear bomb and its designer, the diplomatic situation becomes more awkward ...
Based on the novel by Leonard Wibberley, this is a small, charming, witty comedy of international politics reduced to absurd gesturing (which is what it really is after all), with the cheerful threat of radioactive Armageddon as a backdrop. The central idea - that a bunch of rubes declare war on America and then through coincidence and good fortune, sort of win - is delicious, but it also has a sweet love story, lots of funny vignettes (a bunch of ambassadors playing the board game Diplomacy together) and a great concept for how the arms race should work. Sellers is in his element playing three parts (the first of seven times he did so in a major film), but the rest of the cast are great too, especially Hartnell (the original Dr Who) as the gruff sergeant major and the tragic Seberg (À Bout De Soufflé, Paint Your Wagon), who is achingly cute with her short brown hair. Deftly scripted by Roger MacDougall and Stanley Mann, and carefully crafted by Arnold (who made many great fifties films, including several monster movie classics), this is a minor comedy gem. Perhaps it suffers a little in inevitable comparisons with the incredible Dr Strangelove (Sellers in multiple roles spoofing nuclear war), but it's a different kind of picture; a more gentle satire, and as much about the difference between European and American sensibilities as anything else. Followed by an enjoyable sequel, The Mouse On The Moon, in which only Kossoff reprises his role.
Based on the novel by Leonard Wibberley, this is a small, charming, witty comedy of international politics reduced to absurd gesturing (which is what it really is after all), with the cheerful threat of radioactive Armageddon as a backdrop. The central idea - that a bunch of rubes declare war on America and then through coincidence and good fortune, sort of win - is delicious, but it also has a sweet love story, lots of funny vignettes (a bunch of ambassadors playing the board game Diplomacy together) and a great concept for how the arms race should work. Sellers is in his element playing three parts (the first of seven times he did so in a major film), but the rest of the cast are great too, especially Hartnell (the original Dr Who) as the gruff sergeant major and the tragic Seberg (À Bout De Soufflé, Paint Your Wagon), who is achingly cute with her short brown hair. Deftly scripted by Roger MacDougall and Stanley Mann, and carefully crafted by Arnold (who made many great fifties films, including several monster movie classics), this is a minor comedy gem. Perhaps it suffers a little in inevitable comparisons with the incredible Dr Strangelove (Sellers in multiple roles spoofing nuclear war), but it's a different kind of picture; a more gentle satire, and as much about the difference between European and American sensibilities as anything else. Followed by an enjoyable sequel, The Mouse On The Moon, in which only Kossoff reprises his role.